Why did my computer trip a circuit breaker and why didn’t my surge protector work?
Abbey B asked:
I have been using my computer on the same circuit for about a year now with no issues. The other day when I started it, about 10 minutes into using it, I hear a “pop” noise. My computer had tripped a circuit. I went to the box and reset it, and then I smelled smoke. I looked at my surge protector (it is about a $40 surge protector) and the light was still green (good) instead of red (fault). My computer will not turn on now. Hopefully it is just the power supply?
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I have been using my computer on the same circuit for about a year now with no issues. The other day when I started it, about 10 minutes into using it, I hear a “pop” noise. My computer had tripped a circuit. I went to the box and reset it, and then I smelled smoke. I looked at my surge protector (it is about a $40 surge protector) and the light was still green (good) instead of red (fault). My computer will not turn on now. Hopefully it is just the power supply?
March 31st, 2009 at 8:07 am
Hopefully it is just your power supply.
I think you have some misconceptions. First, power comes from the outside to your computer. The computer won’t trip a circuit breaker, that is caused by a surge in the power line.
Second, those cheap surge protectors are really just glorified power strips. They protect against small surges. Surges occur quite often and over time they can damage appliances. Surge protectors are rated in Joules. Until you hit something that protects at least 1000 Joules, the amount of protection offered is really minimal. A good spike is like a big wave over a beach breaker. The breaker can stop those small ones, but is little barrier to a large wave.
Your circuit breaker is designed to stop those large surges.
I would be concerned of a bad wire coming to the box (or a badly wired electrical box). I would also, after checking the power supply, get a UPS and not a surge protector. The UPS will intercept power, charge a battery, and then feed the computer power from the battery. If a surge comes again, the UPS will take the damage and the computer should be nice and safe.